Colombia: Thoughts on Leaving

ZipaquiráColombia in a nutshell: it has an image of violence on the outside, but is all smiles underneath

Colombia is an easy country to like. Not only does it have a large variety of great attractions, but the people are genuinely friendly; other passengers strike up conversations with you on the Transmilenio, and if you ask strangers for directions or help, they're really happy to help. Even with the language barrier, the Colombians are a delight, and that on its own would be enough to make this country worth visiting. Add in the Caribbean beaches, the colonial towns, the cosmopolitan cities and the sights you won't see anywhere else in the continent, and you're onto a winner.

In fact, the only bad thing about travelling in Colombia is that it's a pretty big country and it can take hours to get from one place to another; that said, there's a good transport network and flights are cheap, so it's not as bad as it could be, but it does mean you have to be picky about what you can cram into your visit. We bottled it in the end and flew everywhere, and after we got ill in Medellín we ground to a halt and stopped even contemplating places that were off the beaten track, but even with the relatively limited itinerary that we ended up with, there was plenty to see.

So for us, Colombia represented not only the end of our six-month trip through Central America, but also a tantalising glimpse of what travelling through South America could be like. In particular, the five-day trek to the Lost City was absolutely wonderful, and surely we now have to put the Inca Trail on our to-do list; indeed, with so many sights missed on this visit to Colombia, there's a strong argument for coming back for a second helping, and that's not something I've said a lot – if at all – on this trip. That, alone, speaks volumes; Colombia is a great country, and it's been a very positive way to end this long journey from Mexico to South America.